5 new technical colleges to be built in Britain

Work started Monday on one of five new national colleges to provide high level training for the builders of 21st century Britain, an official statement said.

The British government is giving more than 115 million U.S. dollars toward the cost of creating the new colleges.

The Department for Business, Innovation, and Skills said the national colleges would deliver high-level technical training to thousands of students across England.

The new higher-education colleges will support the delivery of major infrastructure projects such as the country's biggest-ever rail project, High Speed Two (HS2), and new nuclear facilities.

"The centers of high-tech training will ensure the UK has skilled people in industries crucial to economic growth, high-speed rail, nuclear, onshore oil and gas, digital skills, and the creative industries. It is all part of government's plan to deliver the skilled workforce of the future and abolish long-term youth unemployment," said a department spokesman.

Earlier on Monday, work started on the National College for High Speed Rail, with ground-breaking ceremonies at locations in Doncaster and Birmingham.

The first college is due to open later this year with the network fully operational by September 2017.

The colleges are the National College for High Speed Rail in Birmingham and Doncaster, the National College for Nuclear in Somerset and Cumbria, the National College for Onshore Oil and Gas in Blackpool, a digital skills college in London and a creative and cultural industries college in Essex.

Local authorities, Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), industry bodies, and businesses are also contributing towards the cost of the five colleges. Endit